"Lady Cen, Steward Luo tossed me over here, and he won't let me go back." Steward Luo felt a bitter ache in his heart.
"What can Shen Yiren possibly decide? Just go back and find my mother, or go to my grandmother," Shen Qingrui said bluntly. "It’s not that I don’t want to keep you, but the General’s Estate needs you."
Steward Luo had no choice but to return.
As soon as he stepped into the gate of the General’s Estate, he saw Shen Yiren grabbing a maid, asking, "I need to add things to my courtyard. Who do I go to for that?"
The maid had heard rumors the night before about the eldest daughter’s belongings being burned by heavenly fire. Even the heavens seemed to be speaking up for the second daughter; the maid dared not offend her, and fearing she might be caught in the crossfire, she tremblingly replied, "All major and minor affairs of the estate are managed by Steward Luo, but everything requires the Madam's approval."
"So, if I find Steward Luo, I can get things, right?"
"Yes, but it must be approved by the Madam."
"Which one is Steward Luo?"
Xiao Ba shook his head.
Cang Ming said, "…… The one I dragged to the Duke of Anguo's Estate yesterday."
Shen Yiren had an epiphany. The maid pointed at Steward Luo standing at the entrance and whispered, "There." She didn't forget to remind her once more, "Second Miss, everything added to the estate must be approved by the Madam."
"There is no 'second' here," Shen Yiren corrected her.
The maid immediately changed her address: "Miss." She was then released and scurried away.
Shen Yiren smiled at Steward Luo: "Want to come back?"
Steward Luo felt a chill down his spine. Recalling Shen Qingrui's words, he immediately retorted, "Whether or not I stay in this estate is not for you to decide, Second Miss. It is up to the Madam, the true master."
"I am a master, too," Shen Yiren said. "Last night I burned Shen Qingrui’s belongings, and even Mother couldn't do anything about it. If I kick you out, she still won't be able to do anything."
"You burned the eldest daughter's things!" Steward Luo was shocked. He turned his head to look at the maid nearby, who nodded with a grimace.
*A woman who has suffered such a trauma is truly terrifying,* Steward Luo thought.
"The things added to my courtyard cannot be worse or fewer than what Shen Qingrui originally had. Also, for clothing and such, I like cyan, emerald green, and pale yellow. Xiao Ba, what about you?"
Xiao Ba was also a Ginseng Spirit, so of course, he wanted the same colors.
Shen Yiren asked Cang Ming, but when he said he didn't need anything, she decided for him: "He will have black."
Not only did she demand a higher standard than the original, but she also wanted to add clothes for three people. Steward Luo felt his heart ache just listening: "Where would the estate find so much silver for these purchases? It was all used for the dowry."
"The dowry!" Shen Yiren slapped her own forehead. "I forgot to move the dowry back! If I get the dowry back, I'll have the money, right?"
If she took back the dowry, there would be no need to buy anything new; it was already full of things. Originally, it had been prepared for the eldest daughter, but after the second daughter returned, the fiancé and the dowry had both become hers.
Still, it was fortunate—after all the circles, it was going back to the eldest daughter anyway.
Steward Luo, worried she would actually go and move the dowry, quickly intervened: "There is no such principle in the world as taking back a dowry."
"There is one now. It is my dowry, after all." With that, Shen Yiren left with Xiao Ba and Cang Ming, heading straight for the Duke of Anguo's Estate.
Cang Ming reminded her: "The dowry is vast; I cannot move it alone."
Xiao Ba patted his chest: "I’m here too!"
"It’s hard for two people as well," Cang Ming said. "I will go find some help."
Shen Yiren waved her hand: "Go quickly and come back soon." She was terrified he wouldn't return—this was the first little brother she’d found since coming down the mountain who could fight and fly.
"Shen Yiren, why have you come?" The Duchess of Anguo felt annoyed the moment she saw Shen Yiren. Not only had she hurt her son, but she had also slandered him for murder. "Go back to your General’s Estate."
"I’ll go back once I move my dowry. Who cares about this place?"
Xiao Ba put his hands on his hips: "Exactly!"
"Move the dowry?" The Duchess sneered. "The dowry was already registered with the estate upon Shen Qingrui’s marriage. It is now the property of the Duke of Anguo's Estate."
Though she didn't care much for the pittance of a dowry from the General's Estate, it was better than nothing.
"That is Shen Yiren’s dowry, not Shen Qingrui’s," Shen Yiren repeated.
The Duchess would not back down: "The General’s Estate accepted the betrothal gifts from the Duke of Anguo's Estate."
"Didn't you already get the person?" Shen Yiren said. "That was your son’s greatest desire. What more betrothal gifts do you need?"
"Sharp-tongued creature," the Duchess said, her face darkening. "Go, call Shen Qingrui here."
Cen Liangxuan arrived as well. He had already had his knocked-out teeth replaced with silver paste, though they looked slightly darker than the originals; as long as he didn't open his mouth too wide, it wasn't noticeable.
"Shen Yiren, the Princess and I have already held the wedding ceremony. Give up." Cen Liangxuan was tall, refined, and his voice was deep and pleasant, though his words sounded incredibly grating to Shen Yiren’s ears.
"You give up. I don't like you." Shen Yiren asked Shen Qingrui, "Where did you put the dowry?"
Shen Qingrui had also assumed she had come for the Lord, and never expected it was for the dowry. Either way, it was a disaster.
"Shen Yiren says that is her dowry, not yours, Shen Qingrui. What do you have to say?" The Duchess’s gaze bore down on her, determined to make her keep the dowry.
If managing the household was the respect given by the in-laws, the dowry was the foundation given by one's own family. Without a dowry, the in-laws would surely look down on her.
"Yiren, even if you are ignorant of etiquette, there must be a limit," Shen Qingrui said, using her lack of upbringing as an excuse, while lightly tugging on Cen Liangxuan’s sleeve.
Cen Liangxuan spoke up: "The dowry was prepared by my father-in-law and mother-in-law for Qingrui. You are being savage and unreasonable; there truly should be a limit to this."
"The dowry is prepared by a father and mother for their daughter, and I am their true daughter," Shen Yiren said, tired of explaining. "Xiao Ba, go see where the dowry is. We'll move it when the help arrives."
Xiao Ba nodded heavily, his legs moving with such agility that the people in the Duke's Estate couldn't even catch a hem of his clothes.
"Sister! It’s in the courtyard in the back!" Xiao Ba’s eyes lit up, and he tried to lead Shen Yiren over.
Shen Qingrui ordered people to form a human wall and reached out to block her: "Shen Yiren, how dare you!"
"What is there to be afraid of? You fake. If you want a dowry, go ask your own parents in the countryside for one."
The words "fake" and "parents in the countryside" were like needles in Shen Qingrui’s heart. Hearing them from the true daughter, Shen Yiren, stung more than anything else.
At that moment, Cang Ming arrived with men—a line of guards in black.
"Miss Shen, where are the items?"
"Xiao Ba, take Cang Ming there."
"Cang Ming?" The first time Cen Liangxuan saw him, he felt a sense of familiarity. Upon hearing the name, he realized this was one of Prince Duan’s personal guards.
The Duchess had heard from the Duke the night before that Shen Yiren had some connection to Prince Duan, but she had assumed it was an exaggeration. How could a village girl have any relation to the noble Prince Duan? She had never expected the Prince to send a personal guard to stay by her side.
Shen Qingrui did not recognize the man and continued to obstruct them: "If you dare take another step, do not blame me for being impolite! I have been taught by my father since childhood; I know martial arts!"
Cang Ming drew his sword and held it against her neck.
Shen Qingrui trembled and swallowed hard.
Shen Yiren and Xiao Ba shook their heads in unison, clicking their tongues: "Tsk, tsk."
"I am the Princess!" Shen Qingrui brandished her new status.
Cen Liangxuan stepped forward to push aside Cang Ming’s sword, holding Shen Qingrui’s hand to signal her to be silent. As a Lord, he felt he had no need to bow before a Prince’s guard.
He questioned: "Cang Ming, what is the meaning of this?"
"Lord Cen, my Prince is waiting outside for Miss Shen to finish moving her belongings so they can reminisce. I must trouble you to clear the path."